The invention is in the field of ready-to-eat food bars, and more particularly, meal-substitute food bars.
The prior art reveals many alternative types of food bars which provide nutrition as snacks, meal supplements, or meal substitutes. The ingredients are selected and processed for desired food bar characteristics, formed in cylindrical or rectangular shapes, finally processed, and packaged to provide portable convenience in handling and eating.
Well-known examples include:
Cake and Candy bars such as: [BABE] BABY RUTH ((trademark)), a solid cyclindrical bar of continuous aggregate ingredients coated with a layer of chocolate; MOUNDS ((trademark)), disconnected coated segments of a cored rectangular bar; and CADBURY CHOCOLATE ((trademark)), a rectangular bar divided into a grid of frangibly-connected portions; [OLEO] OREO ((trademark)) cookies, a sandwich of wafers and creamy center; and
Dietary bars, which provide ingredients for normal or special diets, and feature dietary proportions of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats, plus vitamins, minerals and functional additives. Examples include: Diabetic bars low in sugar, salt, and animal fat; Energy bars high in sugar, and Body-Building bars high in protein.
Dietary food bars have ingredients to help health problems such as heart, diabetes, and overweight conditions. Diets include those recommended by the American Heart Association (AHA), American Diabetes Association (ADA), Dr. Atkins, and Dr. Sears. The AHA and ADA diets suggest calorie proportions: 55% Carbohydrate, 15% Protein, and 30% (or less) Fat, with low sugar and salt, high fiber, and smaller meals more often in a day. The Sears and Atkins diets suggest less carbohydrate.
Further, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) suggests total daily calories of 2000 for men, and 1600 for women, less for weight loss and the elderly, and more for the very active. A xe2x80x9cmealxe2x80x9d may be defined as 25% of the daily nutrition requirements.
The prior art also reveals adding flavors to the food bars to improve taste.
In view of the above background, the following prior art patents are cited as pertinent, revealing a variety of useful techniques in making and using food bars. Comments are included to point out their relevence and divergence with respect to critical features of this invention:
[1] U.S. Pat. No. 2,634,210, Kimball, F. T., issued Apr. 7, 1953, teaches a rectangular chocolate bar with two layers to separate incompatable components, and with frangible transverse scored lines.
[2] U.S. Pat. No. 2,538,202, Kimball, F. T., issued Jan. 16, 1951, teaches a two-layer chocolate bar in cylindrical disc shape, in which a chocolate outer layer enrobes the core inner layer. The layers separate incompatible ingredients. Other essential ingredients are suggested if the food bar is to be the sole diet for a considerable time.
[3] U.S. Pat. No. 6,143,335, McKenzie, R. G., issued Nov. 7, 2000, teaches scoring a food bar into bite-sized pieces thus providing a method for delivering exact quantities of supplemental ingredients to animals or humans.
[4] U.S. Pat. No. 5,906,833, Klatz, R. M., issued May 25, 1999, teaches a dietary supplement food bar in plural parts which are chronologically appropriate for consumption.
[5] U.S. Pat. No. 4,820,533, Seaborne, et al, issued Apr. 11, 1989, teaches composition and manufacture of an edible barrier laminate to separate different food phases.
[6} U.S. Pat. No. 4,451,488, Cook, M. L., issued May 29, 1984, teaches composition and manufacture of a soft and chewy granola bar by adding polyhydric alcohols.
[7] U.S. Pat. No. 4,496,606, Michnowski, J., issued Jan. 29, 1985, teaches composition and manufacture of a dietetic snack-bar with high fiber guar gum for a Type II diabetic.
[8] U.S. Pat. No. 6,159,506, Bieser, A. H., issued Dec. 12, 2000, teaches folic acid in a food supplement to help quell stressful attacks on normal physiological and psychological functioning.
[9] U.S. Pat. No. 6,207,638, Portman, R., issued Mar. 27, 2001, teaches a nutritional composition which enhances appetite satiety for individuals who are: overweight, Type II diabetic, or bulemic.
[10] U.S. Pat. No. 2,168,360, Musher, A., issued Aug. 8, 1939, teaches a composition of solid food materials using fat as a carrier, with different types of products in block form in a single container.
[11] U.S. Pat. No. 1,174,826, Chapman, M. S., issued Mar. 7, 1916, teaches a pie of plural non-communicating sections which may contain different ingredients, with separable portions conveniently eaten.
[12] U.S. Pat. No. 1,855,145, Jones, W. B., issued Apr. 19, 1932, teaches an edible cake or candy bar with alternating wedge sections of ingredients to vary the proportions as the bar is eaten, thus improving taste saturation and psychological effects of anticipation.
[13] U.S. Pat. No. 3,882,253, Schafer, et al, issued May 6, 1975, teaches a compacted and dehydrated food bar easily bitten and chewed, using 10% potato particles and 90% non-potato food bar forming ingredients.
COMMENT: The prior art discussed above reveals many useful techniques in making and using food bars, but is severely limited in features for avoiding boredom, controlling appetite, and adjusting caloric intakexe2x80x94these features provided by the present invention, and thereby providing improved physiological and psychological support for the consumer.
The invention is an improved meal-substitute food bar, called herein a meal-equivalent food bar because it is divided into segment portions which are equivalent to the courses of a conventional meal: appetizer, main-course, and dessert. The appetizer segment may include functional ingredients to stimulate appetite, the main-course segment includes the major nutrients of the meal, and may include functional ingredients which transition to the dessert segment which may include functional ingredients to depress or satiate appetite.
Further, the inventive food bar is divided frangibly into length-wise strips, each strip a meal-equivalent containing a selectable predetermined value of calories.
Thus it is an object of the invention to provide a meal-equivalent food bar, with segments which provide both gourmet variety and appetite control, thereby improving the physiological and psychological support of the food bar.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a dietetic meal-equivalent food bar which is made to provide proper nutrient values for a normal diet or a special diet, and allows the consumer to select the meal with a predetermined value of calories, thereby improving the consumer""s caloric control.
A further object of the invention is to provide a meal-equivalent food bar of size, weight and format to be manufactured and packaged for portage in an ordinary pocket of clothing or baggage, and convenient eating.